A bouquet of roses
by Intergalactic Chocochip Cookie
Summary: The prequel to The Baby Chronicles... Alice and Jasper's fist kiss.
1. A bouquet of roses

_Hi guys! For those of you who have been reading The Baby Chronicles, this is the prequel. I wanted Alice and Jasper's first days of romance to be sweeter, Philadelphia seemed somehow dark and cold. I think I overdid the kiss, though. Anyway, enjoy, and_ please,_ review!_

**A bouquet of roses**

I got flowers today. From him. They had a note. _Central Park. Strawberry Fields. 5:00. I'll be waiting. _

What does this mean? What should I think? I take a flower. It's barely blooming, but it already looks very red, its perfume is extremely sweet. I've never seen more beautiful roses in my life. What does he pretend?

Maybe, after all, he likes me. Maybe, after all, he feels something for me. But this idea is as wonderful as impossible. I'll go, just to find out, but I know I shouldn't hope for much. I'm just a photographer, barely starting, I'm only nineteen years old, and he... he's such a powerful entrepreneur, rich, famous, he'd never set eyes in a girl like me.

I don't ever bother changing clothes, I stay in my jeans, black T-shirt and black jacket, I only put on some lipstick, take my purse and my coat, and leave. It's a beautiful evening, with last night's snow still on the ground, and an icy wind that tickles you as to walk. I live near the park, so within seven minutes I'm in Strawberry Fields. He's already there, waiting for me. I wave at him, and I swear I see a special gleam in his eyes. Is it because of me? Am I the reason he smiles widely, the reason he straightens his shoulders and adjusts his coat? Oh my God, how can I be so presumptuous? Of course it's not because of me, what can I mean to him?

Still, he walks towards me. He's so graceful it's almost unbelievable, his walk is magical and he's amazingly, terribly handsome. Finally, we're face to face.

"Jasper," I say.

"Alice," he answers. He leans forward and kisses me on the cheek. I close my eyes and inhale his scent, so sweet, yet so masculine, a unique fragance I'll never get tired of. I so badly want to hold him there, to feel his body against mine... but when I gain the courage he moves away.

"Nice to see you," I say, just to say something, but I feel rather stupid.

"Nice to see you, too," he says. The effect of his smile in his perfect features makes me so nervous I have to look down.

"Would you like to gor for a walk?" he asks.

"Sure," I say, feeling more stupid every second.

We walk in silence around the park for a few minutes and then he speaks again.

"I loved the article you wrote in the magazine. It was so nice of you to say such things about me. Thanks."

_What wouldn't I say about you. That I'm in love with you, for example. _"You're welcome." _And the winner of Miss Stupidity... Alice Brandon!_

"I brought these ones for you," he says. "I hope you like them."

I had been so absorbed ogling him, contemplating the perfection of his face, his hair, his lips, that I hadn't realized he has another bouquet of roses in his hand. He gives me the flowers. They are prettier that the others, with completely open petals, and a delicious perfume emanates from them.

"They're beautiful," I manage to say. "Thank you."

We keep walking and neither of us say anything, until he stops and turns to me.

"Do you know why I sent you the bouquet this morning?" he asks. "Why I gave you this one?"

"Why?"

"It reminds me of something. Can you guess what?" he smiles.

I think for a while and give up. "No," I admit.

"I'll give you a clue," he says. He takes a rose from the new bouquet and caresses my cheek with it. He is so close, and his touch so delicate and tender, that soon I feel myself blushing.

"Exactly that," he says.

"What?"

"Your colour when you blush. You look like a rose. So pretty..."

I turn scarlet.

"Though it matches something else, I see," he adds.

"Your lips."

The flower descends slowly to my lips, brushing them. And then it's not the flower, but his own lips, what touches me. At first he's very careful, he just pinches my lips softly, but when I kiss him back he holds me by the waist and kisses me fully. Oh my God, he likes me, he really does! I put my arms around his neck and grasp a handful of his bronze hair. I could go on with this forever, he's such a good kisser everything else disappears for me. As the tip of his tongue traces the contour of my lips my heart beats so fast and loud it's almost, no, definitely embarrasing. He chuckles and puts more enthusiasm. Then he moves from my mouth and pecks at my face- cheeks, jaw, forehead.

"I love you," I say. "I love you, I love you, I love you."

"I love you, too," he answers, his words mixed with the torrent of kisses. "Hell, yeah, I love you."

He returns to my lips and we keep kissing for a while. Then we hear a tiny laugh; it's a child, she's been staring at us I don't know for how long. Jasper laughs, too, takes my hand, and we approach the child. He kneels before her.

"Hi, honey," he says. "What's your name?"

"Renesmee," answers the kid. She can't be older than five, she's a charming little thing.

"Well, Renesmee, this young lady here is my girlfriend. What do you think about her?"

"She's very pretty. You love her," the child starts to laugh again.

"You're right. In both things. Here, take these sweets. For being so intelligent."

She thanks him and leaves. This scene is very moving for me, and I tell him so.

"You're great with kids," I say. "You'd be a great father."

"And who would be the mother?" he asks, holding me by the waist again.

"I don't know," I answer, smiling.

"You don't know? Well, never mind. We'll have a lot of time to find out. But right now..."

And then, just when it starts to snow, he kisses me again.


	2. Revelations

**Revelations**

She's here, with me, the woman I love, the person I care for most in the world, and I'm about to lose her. I'd give anything not to do this, to spare us both this moment, but I would never be able to hide the ugly truth.

"Jasper? Darling?" her voice brings me back to reality. "What did you want to tell me?"

I sigh. "Alice, sweetheart. My love. My only love. This is very serious. I'll be completely frank with you, and if after I've told you everything you prefer me to go away forever, I'll perfectly understand."

"But, Jazz... why do you say that? Why wouldn't I want to be with you? Honey, you are the only path my life can take, and no matter what happens, I'll always be there with you, ok?" she strokes my cheek.

I look at her and try to find find a nice way to say this. Failing at that, I fire the truth directly. "Alice, I'm a vampire."

She looks at me, her face completely expressionless. "And..." she says.

"And, what?"

"Yes, what else? Is that all?"

"Well, yes... do you want more? Am I disappointing you?"

"Actually, yes, you are." She leans forward and presses her lips softly to mine. "You thought I didn't know?"

"_What?_" I gasp. She knew !?!?

"I've known for a long time . Since I first saw you, I knew you were different. When you asked me out, I noticed our dates weren't the typical ones, there was _something_. I figured out what that something was. I put everything together- you never eat, your skin is always cold, you are too pale. I can call at midnight and you and your family will always be wide awake, when we talk you use a style that belongs to a hundred years ago, your voice also belongs to another era. And you are way too hansome to be human. You know I read a lot, I've come across a few books about your kind. It didn't take me long to realize." She smiles.

"And you still love me?" I ask, doubtfully.

"Of course," she rolls her eyes.

I pull her to me and kiss her long and deeply. I love this woman. She's too good to be true. Her soft, strawberry-flavoured lips caress mine in an irresistible way. I lean forward slightly and put my arms around her shoulders and waist. I move slowly to her neck and return to her mouth. I feel her fingers playing with my hair and look straight at her eyes. The question is clear in my expression, and she nods almost impercptibly. I then slip one arm under her knees and lift her while I kiss her. I run upstairs, to the bedroom I never use. I put her on her feet again and keep kissing and touching her. We walk towards the bed, but right when I'm going to lay her on it there she stops me.

"Jazz, wait. I... I have to tell you something, too."

"What is it, baby?"

"I... I've ne-never... you know... t-this..." she blushes.

I put a finger to her lips. "You thought I didn't know?" It was so obvious she was a virgin, she irradiated such innocence, such purity. "This is your first time."

She nods. "I- I don't know how to do it. And I don't want to disappoint you."

"Don't think about that, darling. You are already far more than I thought I could ever find. I love you."

"I love you."

We kiss again. This time, she doesn't resist when we fall on the bed. Our clothes fall slowly, each of them showered with kisses and caresses. She's the most beautiful creature I've seen in my life, she looks like a porcelain doll, so soft, so tiny, fragile. I can't wait to make her mine, but at the same time she seems so delicate I'm afraid to hurt her. I kiss her carefully, touch her slowly, until she says,

"Didn't you have a soldier ancestor?"

"Um... yes. Well, it was actually myself. Vamp, remember?"

"Then?"

"What?"

"Where's the strenght, the fury, the.. passion?"

"I don't want to break you."

"Listen, sir, Southern gentlemen are so out. If you don't prove you're a real man _I'll_ break you."

I kiss her on the mouth as intensely as I can, while I run my hands all over her body. I look at her and ask,

"Better now, ma'am?"

She giggles. "Much better."

We make love with passionate tenderness; though it's her first time she's, well, a natural, with unbelievable beauty and very, very good instincts. I had been ages waiting for this moment, and it's filled every single of my expectations. Her body is beautiful, and the knowledge that nothing has ever belonged to me as truly as she does, gives me more pleasure than I could ever conceive. I find the fact of this being her first time strangely... arousing. I love knowing that no one has ever had access to her, that she's never done with anyone what she's doing with me, that I'm the only man in her life.

When she allows me inside her I feel like I've lived all these decades solely for this moment, that everything was worth for this precious instant. She's moaning, she's enjoying herself, and the feeling of her soft hands running my back over is everything I could ask for.

I can't help reaffirming my exclusivity with her, "You're mine," I whisper in her ear, and enjoy her reaction to my words. "Mine, mine, mine. You're only mine, you will always belong to me."

"Always," she pants. "Eternally. Forever. I love you," she moans.

And then we're doen. I daresay, this has been the best experience of both our lives. She smiles at me and pulls me to her. She kisses me in that slow, soft way only she knows

"I love you," she repeats.

"I love you," I answer.

I open my arms for her and she falls asleep on my chest.


	3. 520, princess

**In Chinese, 520 is a code. The pronunciation of that number****, Wǔ Èr Líng is almost identical to the pronunciation of another three syllables, Wǒ ài nǐ … "I love you".**

**Enjoy!**

**XOXO**

**520, princess**

That night I took Alice to the fair. It would be only two weeks in town, and she had asked me time and time again to take her there. I had gone almost unwillingly, fairs and all that not being precisely my type, but now I had to admit it couldn't have been a better decision. Her eyes shined with the joy of a little child and she stopped at every stand to buy a corn dog, a diadem with light, or to order me to play basketball until I won the teddy bear she wanted. She was a little ball of energy that couldn't stop rolling from place to place. But after I bought her a cotton candy she calmed down and I was able to hug and kiss her, which was what I had wanted all the time.

The taste of the cotton candy lingered in her mouth, and so every kiss tasted deliciously sweet. Little by little that contact gave me the courage I had been lacking for a while. For months I'd been trying to say this, but I couldn't find the words, the moment or the strength. Was I going too fast? _No, we've already… been intimate, surely she wouldn't have agreed on that if it were all too fast._ Would she be angry at me? _She'd never been, not even once. _Will she say no? _Well, you'll only find out when you ask her, you-_

"Alice, gorgeous, there's something I want to ask you," I finally said.

"Sure, Jasper, what is it?"

I cut a red rose from a bush next to us. With the half-open bud I caressed her forehead, her cheeks, her lips. Her heart accelerated slightly while I felt the nervousness increasing inside her.

"What is it?" she repeated.

I cupped her doll-like face in my hand and got down on one knee. Her heart hammered against her chest as I reached inside the pocket of my coat and took out a little black box. I opened it and, a bit self-conscious at how tight my voice sounded, I said,

"My love, will you marry me?"

She gasped quietly, and her breath became uneven. She was still like a statue, the only movement that of her chest as the air touched her lips. We looked at each other.

"Yes," she finally said. "Yes."

I got on my feet, took her by the waist, and spun her around. When I placed her back on the ground there were two little tears shining on her star-like eyes. I brushed them away with my lips and hugged her.

"Thank you."

"I love you," she answered simply.

"So do I, beautiful. More than anything else in the world. You've brought the light to my life, you _are_ the light in my life. I was so alone, so bitter, so desperate, so-"

"Sshh," she murmured, her fingers on my lips. "You never have to be that again."

Once more, we kissed. Then we remembered the ring and I had the joy of seeing it fit her little finger perfectly. I had bought it during a business trip in France, a couple of months ago. Just so you get an ideas of how long I had been wanting to ask her to marry me, and what a coward I was.

"Now we're engaged," I said, kissing her hand.

"Now we're engaged," she repeated excitedly.

We pressed our foreheads together, fingers intertwined, bodies tense with love and desire. Behind us, the fireworks started, all kinds of sparkling explosions, beautiful colors and shapes touching the clouds. Alice turned around to enjoy them.

"I love you, princess," I whispered in her ear.

She was so perfect, pretty, sweet, intelligent. She was the best woman in the world. And she was marrying me.


End file.
